


Protection

by arzenpai



Category: Original Work
Genre: Detective Noir, Detectives, Gen, Injured Character, M/M, i don't want to reveal too much so i'll leave it at that, noir
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-23
Updated: 2019-06-23
Packaged: 2020-05-18 07:29:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,906
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19329937
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/arzenpai/pseuds/arzenpai
Summary: pro·tec·tion/prəˈtekSH(ə)n/nounthe action of protecting, or the state of being protected.-There is a serial killer in town.





	Protection

**Author's Note:**

> _blink, and you'll miss it. the romance._

**FEBRUARY 15, 2018 02:09  
Downtown Police Department, 2nd Floor Room 208**

“There’s been a murder.”

A tired blue eye flicked upwards and Lark, clad in his wrinkled suit, regarded the nervous intern with a steely—but weary—gaze. “And?”

The intern tensed up even more—he was just helping in for an elective in university and he just had to be assigned to the scary detective with the dead gaze. “S-Sir… They’re calling for you. M-Mr. Ricci has already prepared the car outside,” he stammered, eyes flitting from one point of the crowded office to another.

Lark sighed. It was past midnight, but the police station was still as hectic as ever. That was the norm here in their corner of the city. So many crimes were committed in the wee hours of the night, so the announcement of a murder, while alarming, was nothing new. Still, a murder was a murder, so they had to investigate.

As he slipped his arms into his coat, he gave the intern an expectant look, one that was only answered with a wince. He honestly didn’t have the patience to deal with a wide-eyed newbie who jumped at every single sound. “Well? Give me the details, kid.” He began to stride out of the room, his pace quick and sure.

The intern jumped a little and struggled to catch up. “R-Right! It’s another one of those, sir. Alleyway murder, with two murder weapons—a pocket knife left at the scene, and a missing pistol. The victim was tall, dark-haired, and had blue eyes. Pale skin. He… was a policeman from a nearby station.” The intern shuffled a little and quickly darted his own blue eyes away from Lark when he was looked at.

“Is that so,” Lark muttered under his breath.

Like the intern had said, the car was already parked outside the entrance, a blond man already seated in the driver’s seat. “Yo, Lark,” Gino Ricci greeted as he opened the door. There was an amused grin on his face as he landed Lark a folder. Lark didn’t even need to open it to know its contents—this serial killer had been one of his cases for a while now, and he had already memorized the details like he back of his hand.

“Gino,” he answered, glancing at the blond as the engine revved into life. “What are you doing?”

Gino simply laughed, carefree despite the news they had received.  “Whatever do you mean? I’m driving you.”

Lark narrowed his blue eyes at him. “You’re the Chief. You’re not supposed to be driving detectives like me.” He paused, frowning and considering some things. “Did Hiro put you up to this?”

Gino merely laughed again, waving a hand in dismissal. “Perhaps.”

* * *

**FEBRUARY 27, 2018 01:13  
Santelmo Street Corner San Diego Street, Alleyway**

“This is the third one this month.”

Lark took in a deep breath, closing his eyes for a moment before once again looking upon the scene before him. They alley was dark, but the flashes of the cameras of the forensics team lit up the crime in snapshots.

A policeman still in his uniform. Tall, dark-haired and blue-eyed. His mouth open in a silent scream. A bullet wound in the shoulder. A single stab wound to the eye socket.

“So his MO still hasn’t changed,” Lark noted.

The intern stood nervously behind him and Gino, his lips quivering. He seemed to be trying to look everywhere but the body.

Lark pinched the bridge of his nose. “Three victims per month, starting from May this year, and his targets have all been male policemen from all over the city—"

“—and they all have dark hair and blue eyes,” Gino finished, smirking at the intern, who tensed up even further.

The intern shakily twiddled his thumbs. “Sh-Shouldn’t Mr. Lark already have a protection team? H-He… He’s a possible target, considering the killer’s MO…”

Gino gestured to Lark with a theatric flourish. “Please, Tristan, if you can convince Lark here to stop being such a self-sacrificial idiot, when I have tried and failed, feel free. I’ll even give you a prize.”

Lark was silent, and the intern took that as a chance to speak again. “Mr. Lark… maybe it would be best if you did. I mean—you have family, right?” Lark turned to glare at him, but surprisingly, that didn’t deter him. “I-I mean…! Wouldn’t they be worried? What if s-something happens to you?”

Gino laughed—newbies would have looked at him oddly, but the graveyard shift’s team was used to his eccentric and ever-cheerful demeanor. “Wow, Tristan, I didn’t know you had it in you!” His eyes glinted mischievously. “Listen to the worried young man, Lark. You wouldn’t want to worry Hiro even more, would you?”

Lark wanted nothing more than to hit him. But even if Gino was his friend, he was still Lark’s superior. “Don’t bring Hiro into this, Gino.” He glared harder, even if he knew they never worked on Gino.

Gino shrugged, grinning at him. “No promises, dear detective. No promises.”

* * *

**MARCH 3, 2017 02:09**

**Downtown Police Department, 2 nd floor Room 208**

            He should have known Gino would rat him out to Hiro. Or maybe Hiro found out himself. Either way, Hiro was standing in his office, fussing over him. The shorter man was carefully rearranging the piles of paper stacked on the floor and the books on the shelves, like he always did. Lark, on the other hand, was staring warily at the lunchbox that Hiro had set on his table the moment he came, waltzing cheerily and humming a happy tune.

            “Don’t you have executives to meet, Hiro?” he asked, poking a meatball with his fork.

            “I cleared my lunchtime today to see you, Lark. Don’t worry about my work, everything is fine.” Hiro paused and slid his dark eyes to Lark. “ _Yours_ , on the other hand…”

Lark tensed. He didn’t want this confrontation to happen now.

But Hiro just smiled at him, gleeful and innocent.

“I heard there’s an intern working for you! Gino-san told me about him—Tristan, right?” Hiro perched himself on the edge of the table, leaning closer with a smile. “How is he? I know you don’t like useless subordinates.”

Lark watched Hiro carefully with his eye. “He’s… fine. Jumpy, but works hard. He reminds me of you, actually,” he said slowly, his eye fixated on Hiro’s every move. He expected Hiro to pout and berate him for the jibe, but the man just smiled at him. Lark found himself caught in the moment—that he didn’t notice Hiro leaning even closer until their noses were touching.

“Like me, huh?” Oh-so-gently, Hiro reached up to thumb the skin under Lark’s blind left eye. “Really?”

Lark breathed out quietly. “…well, no. You’re one of a kind, Hiro.”

There was a pleased glint in Hiro’s dark eyes. “I’ll take that as a compliment.”

* * *

**MARCH 21, 2018  04:47  
Downtown Police Department, Interrogation Room 3**

“You were the one with Tristan a few hours before he died.”

Lark glared at the steel table in front of him, turmoil obviously in his gaze.

Tristan was dead. Like all the policemen that the serial killer had targeted. It was the first time the killer had killed someone who wasn’t officially part of the police force. Lark couldn’t understand it. He had thought that Tristan would be safe, despite his features—after all, he was just an intern. Lark had thought that the next target would be himself—he had done his research, and he was, by far, the last dark-haired, blue-eyed man in the police force of the city. But Lark had been careless, and now Tristan was dead.

“I was.”

Gino sighed at the defeated answer. “It’s like you weren’t even trying to catch the killer.”

Silence.

Lark knew he could refute that—his reports were flawless and detailed, and each suspect had been questioned intensively. Still, it hadn’t been enough to catch the actual killer. And there was still no confession, no new lead. It wasn’t his fault that there was still a missing connection that the police force couldn’t see.

But deep down, he knew he didn’t have it in himself to defend his actions. Or in this case, his inaction. After all—he hadn’t done all he could have.

He looked up at found Gino staring him down, humming thoughtfully. “You really have nothing to say?”

Lark brought down his gaze once more.

“...I’m sorry.”

Gino looked unimpressed, as if he had expected more from him.

* * *

**APRIL 14, 2017 18:36  
Red Residences, 14th floor, Room 1407**

Lark slowly pushed himself off the bed as the doorbell rang insistently. “Ugh, I’m coming, I’m coming,” he grouched. He basically slammed the door open, glaring at the intruder who had interrupted his sleep. When his gaze landed on the person across the threshold, however, it softened.

“...Hiro. What brings you here?”

The smaller man stepped forward suddenly, and Lark knew he was going to get tackled, but then Hiro stopped, his hands fisted at his sides. “You’re hurt.” His voice was soft and subdued, like it always was, but this time it wavered weakly.

Lark followed Hiro’s gaze to the bloodied bandages wrapped around his shoulder. “This is just a scratch. Nothing much. You didn’t need to come by to check on me.” The last he knew, Hiro had been in Italy, signing a contract with some fancy schmancy company for exports— and that had been three days ago.

Hiro’s eyes watered, and anger flashed on his usually timid face. “I wouldn’t have found out if I didn’t interrogate Gino-san through the phone! I want to punch you, idiot!”

That, Lark didn’t doubt. Hiro was awfully soft-hearted and kind, but he was awfully overprotective—and his money and power as the Sakurai Corporation Director helped if he wanted to do something. But Lark didn’t like being babied. Hiro had done that enough back when they were in school.

“...Like I said. It’s a scratch.”

Hiro tensed up further. “It’s a _bullet hole_ , not a _scratch_ ,” he hissed. He stomped forward and Lark backed away to let him into the apartment. He noticed that Hiro’s bodyguards weren’t in the hallway and wondered if Hiro had ran away from them again. Shrugging, he decided that it wasn’t his problem— Hiro could protect himself fine, and Lark had his gun for defense.

“There’s really no need to worry. The wound was minimal, and the doctor cleared me for work.” Paperwork, that is. But still, it was better than getting stuck in the hospital and getting bored out of his mind.

Hiro huffed and made a beeline for the kitchen, giving Lark a stare when he opened his mouth to object. “But you were still shot, Lark. Seriously. This isn’t the first time, either.” His dark eyes flicked towards Lark’s still-healing eye.

Lark dropped himself unto a chair by the dining table, his chin propped up on his fist. “I work for the police force, Hiro. It’s unavoidable.”

“Well, you could just work for a private firm. Or for Sakurai Corporation. Somewhere more stable. Somewhere safer.”

Lark drew his gaze away. “Not this again, Hiro. You know why I can’t do that.”

He could feel Hiro’s eyes on him. “There’s no way for me to convince you, is there?”

“...Not really, no.”

He heard Hiro hum.

“We’ll see about that.”

**Author's Note:**

> feel free to discuss things with me in the comments!  
> i'm also on twitter @arzenpai


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